The present invention relates generally to medical treatment systems, and more particularly, to a reduced-pressure, wound-treatment dressings, systems, and methods.
Wounds may be received either intentionally, such as surgical incisions, or unintentionally, such as in an accident. In either case, closure of the wound is important to prevent loss of vital body fluids and invasion by micro-organisms. Wounds are typically closed through the use of sutures or staples.
The use of sutures or staples may, however, have undesirable side-effects. For example, the insertion of sutures or staples necessarily involves inflicting the patient with an additional wound where the sutures or staples enter the epidermis of the patient. These additional wounds are also subject to possible infection. Moreover, while the wound itself may result in scarring, the additional wounds from the sutures or staples may also result in additional scarring, which may unnecessarily highlight the already atheistically undesirable nature of the original wound scar.